Japan's Former PM Shinzo Abe Assassinated
2022-07-09
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1Former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has died after being shot in the chest during a campaign speech Friday, medical officials said.
2The attack shocked Japan, a nation with some of the most restrictive gun control laws in the world.
3The 67-year-old Abe died at a hospital in Nara.
4He had been getting treatment there for gunshot wounds from what police described as a handmade gun.
5Abe was Japan's longest-serving prime minister. He resigned in 2020 because of a health problem.
6Videos from Japanese broadcaster NHK showed Abe speaking at a train station in Nara when two gunshots rang out.
7The former prime minister fell to the ground while holding his chest.
8His shirt was covered in blood.
9Medical officials said Abe was not breathing and his heart had stopped after being airlifted to the hospital.
10Doctors tried to stop the bleeding and gave him a blood transfusion.
11They said Abe had deep wounds to the heart and the right side of his neck.
12He was declared dead at 5:03 p.m. local time.
13Police arrested the suspected gunman at the place of the attack.
14The suspect has been identified as 41-year-old Tetsuya Yamagami of Nara.
15He served in Japan's navy for three years until 2005.
16NHK reported that the suspect told the police that he was not pleased with Abe and wanted to kill him.
17The man also said he had made several handmade explosives and guns in the past.
18Japan has very restrictive gun laws that make it almost impossible to buy a gun.
19Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida condemned the attack as "barbaric," saying it took place during elections that form the very heart of Japan's democracy.
20Even before the shooting, Abe was expected to have a major impact on Sunday's election.
21During his years in office, Abe pulled Japan out of an economic recession.
22He built strong ties with the United States and wanted to counter China's growing strength in Asia.
23His goal of rewriting the nation's pacifist constitution failed because of poor public support.
24Japanese officials have said the election planned for Sunday will still take place.
25U.S. President Joe Biden said, "This is a tragedy for Japan and for all who knew him."
26Similar messages of shock and sadness came from leaders around the world, including from neighboring Taiwan, China and Russia, as well as from across Asia and Europe.
27The attack shocked Japan. With a population of 125 million, the country had just 10 gun-related criminal cases last year.
28Police said eight of those cases were related to gang activities.
29Tokyo, a city of nearly 14 million people, had no gun incidents, injuries or deaths last year.
30Shiro Kawamoto is a professor at the College of Risk Management at Nihon University in Tokyo.
31He said, "Japanese people are in a state of shock."
32Kawamoto added, "This serves as a wake-up call that gun violence can happen in Japan, and security to protect Japanese politicians must be re-examined."
33I'm Ashley Thompson.
1Former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has died after being shot in the chest during a campaign speech Friday, medical officials said. 2The attack shocked Japan, a nation with some of the most restrictive gun control laws in the world. 3The 67-year-old Abe died at a hospital in Nara. He had been getting treatment there for gunshot wounds from what police described as a handmade gun. 4Abe was Japan's longest-serving prime minister. He resigned in 2020 because of a health problem. 5Videos from Japanese broadcaster NHK showed Abe speaking at a train station in Nara when two gunshots rang out. The former prime minister fell to the ground while holding his chest. His shirt was covered in blood. 6Medical officials said Abe was not breathing and his heart had stopped after being airlifted to the hospital. Doctors tried to stop the bleeding and gave him a blood transfusion. They said Abe had deep wounds to the heart and the right side of his neck. 7He was declared dead at 5:03 p.m. local time. 8Police arrested the suspected gunman at the place of the attack. The suspect has been identified as 41-year-old Tetsuya Yamagami of Nara. He served in Japan's navy for three years until 2005. 9NHK reported that the suspect told the police that he was not pleased with Abe and wanted to kill him. The man also said he had made several handmade explosives and guns in the past. 10Japan has very restrictive gun laws that make it almost impossible to buy a gun. 11Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida condemned the attack as "barbaric," saying it took place during elections that form the very heart of Japan's democracy. 12Even before the shooting, Abe was expected to have a major impact on Sunday's election. During his years in office, Abe pulled Japan out of an economic recession. He built strong ties with the United States and wanted to counter China's growing strength in Asia. His goal of rewriting the nation's pacifist constitution failed because of poor public support. 13Japanese officials have said the election planned for Sunday will still take place. 14U.S. President Joe Biden said, "This is a tragedy for Japan and for all who knew him." Similar messages of shock and sadness came from leaders around the world, including from neighboring Taiwan, China and Russia, as well as from across Asia and Europe. 15The attack shocked Japan. With a population of 125 million, the country had just 10 gun-related criminal cases last year. Police said eight of those cases were related to gang activities. Tokyo, a city of nearly 14 million people, had no gun incidents, injuries or deaths last year. 16Shiro Kawamoto is a professor at the College of Risk Management at Nihon University in Tokyo. He said, "Japanese people are in a state of shock." 17Kawamoto added, "This serves as a wake-up call that gun violence can happen in Japan, and security to protect Japanese politicians must be re-examined." 18I'm Ashley Thompson. 19Hai Do adapted this story for Learning English based on reports from VOA News, The Associated Press and Reuters. 20__________________________________________________________________ 21Words in This Story 22chest - n. the front part of the body between the neck and the stomach 23blood transfusion - n. e medical treatment in which someone's blood is put into the body of another person 24barbaric - adj. very cruel 25impact - n. major influence or effect 26recession - n. a period of declining economic activities 27pacifist - n. belief that war and violence are wrong 28tragedy -n. causing great sadness 29gang - n. a group of criminals 30_________________________________________________________________ 31We want to hear from you. We have a new comment system. Here is how it works: 32Each time you return to comment on the Learning English site, you can use your account and see your comments and replies to them. Our comment policy is here.